Desert in the Sky
by Dannilicious
Summary: A new foe has a grudge against the War, intending to end it even at the destruction of both the Makai and Ningenkai! How did the battle for the Crown begin? Could the VERY first King come back to try and reclaim the throne?
1. Chapter 1 Demon of Yemen

**Title: **Desert in the Sky

**Authors:** Petrafina Dantanko

**Summary: **A new foe has a grudge against the War, intending to end it even at the destruction of both the Makai and Ningenkai! How did the battle for the Crown begin? Could the VERY first King come back to try and reclaim the throne?

**Warning: **strong violence, mild language

**Disclaimer:** I do not own _Kojiki no Gash,_ but I do have authority over Bituah, her Mamono and their attacks. Please ask before using any; thank you.

**Author notes:** None at the moment.

* * *

Women should not wander streets at night, especially alone.

But Bituah held more audacity than most women of her nation, and she knew the price that such pride paid - not just at the hands of the government. The priests were the most feared of their kind: fierce, heavy-bearded fiends with condemnation glimmering in their eyes.

But Bituah walked with little fear, for she had her book - not tucked in the safety of her robe, but hanging by her side, open for all to eye.

The Mosque was not a far walk, but her hosts had begged her to not go (especially since she had not told them where she was headed). The man, burdened with a chronic cough, was an old and gentle figure, who had begged the most, but the seemingly foolish smile on her face had silenced him and his family.

So she arrived at the brightly lit holy site, the only intention in her heart: to worship. She strode inside and eyed its intricacy while seeking the room in where to wash herself.

"What is a woman doing in here?"

Bituah merely turned her head towards her left. The two men seemed young, in their twenties, but their faces showed signs of steadily growing whiskers. She merely blinked, remaining silent for the moment.

"Well?" began this first speaker. "What say you?"

Pursing her lips, she replied in her naturally quiet voice, "Women are better meant for silence, for they are mere objects."

"And they should also not wander without their Father, Brother or Husband!" A smile crept on the man's face. Bituah tightened her grip on her book, her face remaining stoic. The man's eyes then wandered to her side. He asked, "What is that you hold?"

Bituah cocked her head as the men approached her. The book began rising in her arm slowly.

"That is not the Qu'ran," growled the second man. "What is a woman doing with a text other than the Holy One?"

"No good," replied the first, "which is why we cannot merely expel her."

"Away with you!" she hissed, but the men lunged for her anyway. And before they started wrestling for it, she cried, _"Aranya!"_ - the Persian green book glowing an ominous pastel green.

The men halted - releasing her and gazing at her with narrowed eyes of confoundment. Silence echoed throughout the mosque, until the trio heard a gust blow through the entrance. Suddenly -

"Ah!" The men cried as a sharp wind smacked them far and hard against the wall, an unceremonious thud reverberating. Bituah glanced around for the assailant, who immediately made its presence known.

The demon stood slightly taller than a ten-year-old human, and indeed, it was one decade old. And it looked rather human, despite the goat ears and small horns, the goat tail and inhuman feet. One inverted triangle streaked below each eye, which shown catlike and a malicious golden green.

"They seem to have sustained greater injury than the last," said Bituah as the demon went to inspect the victims.

Placing a hand behind one man's head, it drew its fingers close to its mouth and licked off the large portion of blood. It replied, "A little more serious than last time, yes," and it returned to its book keeper.

"Which country now?" asked Bituah. "We cannot remain in these countries for long."

"Indeed," replied the Mamono. "The lack of competition worries me least. As for your well-being..."

Bituah cast one last, distant glance as the unconscious and bleeding men. She nodded and opened her book.

_"Shetanaii!"_

Arms opened as if to be crucified, gusts of enegry appeared in the Mamono's stretched palms and soon engulfed the pair. They immediately vanished in a powerful storm, which ravaged the bowels of the mosque and nearly destroyed its entrance as it blew into the eerie, star-struck Arabian night.

* * *

"Gash Bell, are you _crazy_!"

Kiyomaro's angry shout brought the golden-haired Mamono to the kitchen, a sheepish grin on his little lamb face.

"Yes, Kiyomaro?" queried Gash, but his supplication could not sooth the Oni they called Kiyomaro.

"What kind of weird experiment were you trying to pull this time?" raged the human, holding high a pot, its insides charred with whatever-it-was.

"Oh, hey!" Gash's mind trailed, as if Kiyomaro had not yelled at him at all, and he snatched the pot holder. "I wondered what would happen to this. Hn... Looks like Vulcan put it on five minutes too many."

"Five minutes too - what do you mean!" shrieked Kiyomaro. "You know my mother doesn't let you in here alone after last time!"

"Oh yeah..." The memory seeped slowly into Gash's tiny, but happily naïve, brain. He giggled and replied, "Okay, Kiyomaro, no more experiments!"

Rage slightly (oh-so slightly) subsiding, the human released a sigh of extreme exasperation. His mother would annihilate them - if not their hearing - if she discovered any evidence of the mess and -

"Oh, my gods, what _is_ that?"

"You mean the thing that's twitching in the sink?"

"Do I even really want to know?"

"Why wouldn't you, silly?"

"Gash!"

The chase for the Mamono lasted quite a while, leaving another half of the house in ruins larger than a Mesopotamian temple. Finally Kiyomaro realised the futility in his chase, and he hurriedly began cleaning and fixing and disposing what needed to be disposed (especially the moldy whatever-it-was, which seemed to be fastly evolving into sentient life).

Gash helped somewhat. He (and the Vulcan 300) had volunteered, but when their work only augmented Kiyomaro's woes, he made Gash scrub the floors _after_ he was _completely_ finished with one section of the house.

"Kiyomaro, I'm back from market."

"Mother!" he gasped under his breath, and he glanced around the house frantically. Small messes were present here and there, but at least the kitchen looked decent, if not normal. So with a deep breath, he helped Hana enter.

"Oh, dear, I should have been wiser and let you come," she said, handing the bags to him. "I have a few more bags in the car, if you don't mind."

"Never, Mother," replied Kiyomaro with a smile, and he set the bags on the kitchen table.

While Hana began unloading the items, she asked, "How did you and Gash entertain yourselves?"

"Oh, Mum, we - "

Kiyomaro clamped a hand over Gash's big mouth. The older boy replied, "We relaxed and read and... did some cleaning."

"Aw!"

Suddenly Hana began sniffing, detecting a strange odor. She asked, "Have you been cooking?"

"Oh, not that much," and he rushed himself and Gash out to the car to unload the four last bags.

"It's hot and dry all of a sudden," said Gash as they returned inside the house.

"Hn?" Kiyomaro glanced high and at the trees. At that moment a wisp of wind rustled the leaves. He remained still until a stronger gust blew, nearly knocking the bags from his grip.

"Woah! Weird weather," he said but shrugged and joined Gash in the house.

But if _Gash_ had paid closer attention, he might have detected the Mamono, who from only two kilometres away affected the weather for quite a distance.

At the same time, a rather mismatched duo had taken to the air to eye potential victims. Unfortunately Eita Kubozuka became distracted by a young, scantily-clad woman, and he nearly crashed into one of the taller buildings in the city.

"I'm okay!" he chirped. "Missed me by a mile!"

Hyde rolled his eyes and began murmuring. He eyed the landscape when a discrepency in the wind caught his sight.

"Hn? Eita we're going this way."

"Why? I just found a good restaurant where they sell Buri Burg - "

"Just get over here, or I'll let gravity do your flying!"

The pointed - though unreal - threat got Eita to follow Hyde closely. The human finally noticed what he noticed: a strange, harsh flickering in the wind. And as they got closer, its course changed - as did its speed - heading directly for them.

"Ah!"

"What's the matter Hyde - ah!" he cried, when the gust suddenly bombarded them through the air, sending them tumbling at an incredible speed towards the ground.

"Do something!" cried Eita.

"Like what?" Hyde could do very little, as the wind was too strong to counter until they began whirling between the buildings. Finally only a few metres from being crushed, Hyde summoned a spell to break their fall. It returned at an angle.

Hyde tumbled on the pavement and landed on the sidewalk, skidding painfully to a stop. Eita received worse luck: crashing into the glass doors of the building behind Hyde.

"Ow," moaned the Mamono, but he soon remembered Eita. "Oh no. Eita!" And he ran through the broken entrance to see to his cringing friend. "Eita, Eita, are you all right?"

The human sat carefully. Glass shards were embedded here and there. He bled on face and hands but not profusely.

"I think I need to go to a hospital," he groaned, and Hyde looked frantically at the stunned faces of the people who gathered. Then Eita said, "But make sure that I get the _cute_ nurses."

Hyde grinned, still shaken but glad to see that his friend still seemed all right. Then Eita's eyes shot wide, and he pointed outside. "Look!"

A small dust devil formed on the sidewalk. Hyde and Eita stood wide-eyed at the strange occurence: sand gathering in the funnel and taking shape. And in place of the sand stood a human in midnight blue garbs: a veil and robe, ebon pants beneath and dark lightweight shoes. In one arm laid an open book scribed with demonic symbols.

"A book keeper!" Hyde lept onto Eita's shoulders, reaching frantically for his book in the back pack.

"She must be one of those Arab chicks," said Eita, noting the concealed nose and mouth. "Hey, I bet she's pretty cute underneath that veil, huh?"

"Eita! Focus," growled Hyde as he handed him the book.

The woman blinked nonchalantly and recited, _"Aranya,"_ and though said without much fervor, a powerful wind began blowing relentlessly against the pair, who struggled to keep on their feet.

_"Jikeru!" _cried Eita, and Hyde tried to counter the wind with his own gust spell. His attack almost worked, but the woman seemed undaunted.

_"Uigako!"_ A beam formed before her, spinning like a maelstrom before it shot at the stunned partners. And since they could not act quickly enough, the force of a vehicle speeding eighty kilometres per hour knocked them all about and against the wall.

Finally the people in the building panicked and scattered and scurried aimlessly, trying to escape whatever-it-was before it could injure or even kill them.

"Nnn..." Hyde was sluggish to rise, and when he spat he saw his blood. He ran his fingers against his teeth, finding that none were missing.

_This is a bad time to be bleeding internally, _he thought, body quivering as he rose to elbows and knees. He moaned, "Eita..."

He received no immediate response. "Eita?" Still the human gave no answer. Hyde's head shot in the direction of his partner. "Eita?"

And he lay before him, face toward the ground, breathing shallowly, hands on one side.

"Eita!" Hyde crawled beside him and rolled him on his back. He chanted his name as he pried his fingers from off the wound: a glass shard peering from the blood stain on his shirt.

"Eita?" Hyde convulsed, tears forming in his green eyes, but the human merely smiled.

"Hy... Hyde..." he groaned. "What's sticking out of my side? Hyde?"

The Mamono sat stunned for a moment. His fingers finally grabbed the sides of the jagged shard, and he pulled hard on it. Eita groaned louder, teeth grit, but he tried to cooperate. Finally Hyde yanked out the fatal shard: at least forty centremetres long, less than half of that in its width. Eita coughed and rolled onto his knees again, gagging up blood.

"Hyde, Hyde, I'm bleeding!" he whined.

"No kidding!" whimpered Hyde, tears beginning to streak down his cheeks.

Eita whimpered. Hyde knew he wanted to head home, but as he reached for their book, a long, slender, feminine foot stepped on it. Poisonous, terra-cotta eyes bore Death unto the Mamono, freezing him in their malice.

But when he expected her to speak - he had hoped for her to speak - she unnerved him even further with her silence and that stare.

"Ever see what happens when you use someone's ribs for a trampoline?"

Hyde's head whipped over one shoulder. He stared at the goatlike demon, who stood over Eita's prostrate body, an inhuman foot on his chest. It had dragged the body from him when he had not been paying attention.

"Well?" it asked, but Hyde's eyes remained wide and fearful. The other Mamono grinned and scoffed, removing the foot, only to jump on Eita's chest.

"Gah!" Blood spurted from the human's gaping maw as the demon bounced steadily on his chest, bone cracking louder and louder.

"STOP! You'll kill him!" cried Hyde, and the demon did stop, only to grin maliciously at him.

"That's... kind of the idea I had."

Before he even realised it, Hyde rushed towards the demon, and before his feet smashed through Eita's ribcage, Hyde pounced and tackled him. But their struggle lasted briefly: the demon punching off Hyde.

"How sentimental..." he articulated, standing tall. "Of course, emotional attachment such as yours _is_ costly in this - or _any_ - competition like this."

A palm extended before Hyde's weeping face. The demon grinned as its book keeper uttered the next spell.

_"Jikerunu."_

A gust formed in his palm and almost hit Hyde, but it moved quickly enough. The blast began incinerating the vulnerable book. The Mamono boy cried and rushed to try to save his book, only to trip on Eita's bleeding body.

"Eita," he sobbed, leaning closely and holding one of the older boy's hands. "Eita, they burned the book."

The young man smiled and replied, "I figured... I'm sorry, so sorry..." and he shut his eyes, tears streaming down his pallor cheeks. Hyde screamed: "EITA!"

A shadow loomed over him. A voice hissed, "You poor baby, you would think that a couple of redheads like yourselves were brothers. Ha!" And a fist slammed into the side of Hyde's face. The boy hit the ground, a cracking resounding and a small pool of blood forming before he vanished into the Makai.

"You should learn to quell your thirst, Child of the Simoon," began Bituah as sirens outside began blaring. "Allah forbid you become cannibalistic."

The demon rounded and scoffed. He joined her and then replied, "You mustn't be so sympathetic toward sinners. Remember that these demon children and their families are cheats and thieves. And you know that those kinds of people are not worthy of God's mercy."

"Next time, though, we should have more respect for the innocents," and they scanned the damage done to the building and how empty it seemed without its people.

"For all you know, they're damned, too," he said, but Bituah gave no reply. Then the demon held her left arm and said, "Now, come. We've more work to do."

The woman looked into those demonic eyes. A not-all-that innocent smile appeared on the Mamono's face. She uttered below the sound of a whisper, "Yes, my Agrat Bahn," and in that instance, a dust devil formed around the partners. They vanished through the gaping entrance in a strong wind, blowing high into the sky to seek others deemed unworthy.


	2. Chapter 2 Gash Against the Beast

**Chapter 2**

"Oh my gods... Gash!"

The Mamono skipped happily into Kiyomaro's room, the Vulcan 300 and three cookies in hand.

"What is it, Kiyoma - "

"Sh!" His eyes were fixed on the live coverage flickering on the television screen. Gash had arrived just as the reporter was saying:

"... what happened after this last shot: a young, veiled woman seems to have appeared from nowhere, and a mere two seconds later, all video cameras focused on or near the area were disabled."

"Look!" Kiyomaro pointed at the screenshot, finger pointing out the book that the woman held in one arm. "It's another book keeper."

Gash pressed his face closely to Kiyomaro's and replied, "Hey! It is, but you can barely see it."

The report continued but on the location. "... to witnesses, an incredible wind managed to throw one young man and a boy through the glass entrance. Not long after witnesses fled, several other blasts ripped through the building before the suspect fled. The younger boy was not found, but the elder of the pair lay seriously injured."

Then his picture - one of when he must have still been in school - flashed on the screen. His identity shocked Kiyomaro and Gash.

"The young man is Eita Kubozuka, who according to his parents, has been missing for nearly a year."

"Eita... got involved in this?"

"I thought something was strange about that wind from earlier," muttered Kiyomaro. "Poor Eita."

"... is indeed in critical condition. Police urge any and all people with information about the suspect to please contact them at..."

"Gash!"

Kiyomaro's voice snapped his attention from the screen and to the door. The human already had his book in hand and was standing halfway out the door. He said, "Come on. We don't had much time before the trail gets cold."

The little Mamono rushed out the door with him, only to return to set Vulcan safely on Kiyomaro's desk. Then he dashed out and joined him just as he mounted his bicycle.

"Bye, Mum!" cried Kiyomaro. "We're off to the business district."

"What for?"

"Business!" And he paddled at his top-most speed to the Fubuki Business Headquarters, the site of the apparent battle. His journey would have taken five minutes, had the police not set so many detours. But he managed to slip through the crowds onto paths he had well-travelled.

Finally the pair arrived several metres from the scene. He and Gash dismounted and walked the bike, getting as close as they could to the police line. The site was incredible.

"It looks like a bomb exploded," gasped Kiyomaro, unconsciously walking too closely.

"Hey there! Mind where you're going!"

The young man halted as the officer seemed to approach, but the man halted and returned to his duty when certain the boy would not cross. Then another closer to the line said, "Hey, I know you! You're the Takamine fellow from not too long ago."

Kiyomaro nodded. The officer approached him.

"And that's your little friend who helped too!" he chirped. "What are you two doing here? Looking to help out? Can't do much right now, the suspect slipped away."

"And you guys aren't too sure where she headed?"

"We're not officialy saying 'she.' You know how clever some men are: purchasing stuff so they only look like females to get away with whatever. But I wouldn't worry about a repeat. We've had a security increase."

Kiyomaro hummed contemplatively. _I wouldn't be so sure, _and his glance returned to the devastation.

"Kiyomaro! There's blood on the ground!"

"How'd that brat get passed security!"

Kiyomaro's eyes widened when he saw Gash milling through the site, eyeing items here and there, literally sniffing any clues. The human's face blackened with the annoyance of an angered Oni, and he cried, "Gash! What do you think you're doing? Get back here before you get in trouble! Gash!"

The little Mamono looked so absorbed as he disappeared into the building. He surprised some of the men whenever he crawled from around a corner or crawled atop their shoulders, but then he noticed a pile of ashes and began sniffing it. He cried, "Kiyomaro!"

The young man almost crossed the line, had several stone-faced guards not stopped him.

Gash continued his investigation, leaping from each drying pool of blood before he rushed back to Kiyomaro.

_"Unuu_... Kiyomaro!" he began, leaping into his arms. "Hyde's gone! His book is burned."

"What?"

"And I don't think he returned home uninjured..." Gash lowered his eyes. "Oh, Kiyomaro, I hope Eita turns out all right. He bled so much."

Kiyomaro comforted him for a long moment before they mounted the bicycle again. He asked him, "Did you pick up the attackers' scents?"

_"Unuu_..." The little Mamono moaned. "I can't zero in on it. The scent is all over the wind."

"Can you make a good guess of which direction?"

Gash paused and crawled atop his shoulders. He sniffed as hard as he could, but he replied, "We could try going toward the ocean..."

Kiyomaro shrugged. "Couldn't hurt," and he peddled as far to the coast as possible. They happened upon Megumi and Tio on a photography shoot and stopped behind the watchful crowd.

"Megumi!" he cried, catching her attention. She smiled at him and asked the photographer for a break, and he rather could not refuse the request from the sweet young woman.

"What brings you here?" asked Megumi cheerfully.

"Megumi, have things been going smoothly?"

She knit her eyebrows. "Kiyomaro, what's going on? Is it another Mamono?"

He nodded. Megumi glanced at Tio and replied, "She seemed pretty apprehensive this passed hour. Do you know who it is?"

"Not a clue, except that it's probably a wind Mamono," replied Kiyomaro, "and the book owner was wearing one of those veils at the battle; you know, the kind you see in the Middle East."

"It was a woman?"

"Had to be. The thing that gets me is... I think they tried to _kill_ their opponents."

The statement stunned Megumi. "This after we just defeated Zophiss. Woah..."

"So I would keep on the aleart for any strange enegries in the city, and if you can steer clear of any opponents until we get our group together, that'll help a great deal."

Megumi smiled and gave a thumb-up. "You can count on me, Kiyomaro, as long as I can count on you to not get in much trouble yourself."

"I swear it," and he returned the thumb-up. "Come on, Gash! Let's head back."

"Right! Bye, Tio."

"Bye, Gash," and she hugged her friend before he climbed on Kiyomaro's bike and sped closer to the coast. The wind seemed very cool and clean at first, but the closer they got, the more arid and unbreathable the air became."

"Kiyomaro, I'm thirsty," whined Gash. "I want some water."

"I know, but I don't have any money," but only a few seconds later:

"Kiyomaro, I'm getting thirstier."

"Is that even a word?"

"Kiyomaro, please, I want some water!"

"All right," he sighed and halted with a screech of the bike. Then the pair hopped to their feet and strolled the promenade, looking for a fountain. They noticed that very few people were wandering.

"Hn... And this on a Sunday," said Kiyomaro.

Kiyomaro's feet kept guiding him, hut he suddenly noticed that Gash was no longer by his side. He stopped, turned, and found that Gash had stopped a couple metres behind him, paralysed, eyes toward the ocean.

"What is it, Gash?" asked Kiyomaro, but for a moment the boy demon made no reply. His eyes were fixed intensely on the landscape beyond the water, but the second time his partner said his name, he snapped from his trance.

"What are you picking up?" asked Kiyomaro quietly, standing beside him.

_"Unuu_... I'm not sure," he replied, shaking his little head. "I just got a bad feeling..."

"From the ocean?"

He shooked his head slowly. "From everywhere, but my eyes just went to the ocean."

"Something has to have been there for your eyes to wander like that."

Gash hummed pensively, eyes on the ground. Kiyomaro asked, "Are you certain it isn't there now?"

"Hn... nn hnn..."

"All right, then."

Kiyomaro mounted his bike but waited for Gash for a moment. Finally he joined him, and they began speeding home.

Observing them from the sky was a familiar and deadly pair, eyeing them meticulously. The demon smirked maliciously and said, "I sense a great, hidden power in the child and his book keeper. I think we ought to give it a wake-up call!"

His book keeper smirked beneath her veil, and they quickly descended on the pair.

Kiyomaro - Gash, even - never expected the attack. But they were knocked from the bike with incredible force, sustaining scratches and skinned limbs as they tumbled.

The brief laugh was full of mocking. Kiyomaro rose immediately, eyebrows knit in growing anger.

"What's the big idea?" But then he saw the inhuman child and behind him, a veiled figure. His eyes widened. "The veiled one!"

"Why so stunned, boy?" purred the demon. "You look as pale as an Ifrit!"

Kiyomaro grit his teeth. "Are you the ones who struck earlier today, the ones who nearly killed Eita and Hyde?"

"Oh, so infidels _do_ have names," and the demon's grin augmented. "Oh, but my friend, the human very well will be dead enough. There's no way in Heaven or Gehenna that he shall recover from his injuries. I made that certain..."

Kiyomaro's grip on his red book tightened. Gash stood tall, amber eyes glistening with antipathy for the demon's apparent cruelty.

"You have no right - "

"I have _every_ right!" The demon interrupted Kiyomaro. "I am above your human laws, no matter what they consider transgression. And I shall descend as low as I please to win that Crown that I _rightfully _deserve" - these last two words spoken with the greatest hubris.

"You..." Kiyomaro had no great enough insult for the beast. "_Zakeru!"_

The highly charge attack fired from Gash's mouth. The demon smirked and glanced at his book keeper.

_"Azzashirudo!"_

Palms extended forward, a large round shield whirled before them and knocked the attack back to its owner.

"Ach!" And the boys parted before they were electricuted. "Whoo, that was close."

_"Jikerunu!"_

The wind blast soared straight for Kiyomaro before he could get back on his feet. Gash cried as he rushed and knocked his partner and himself out of the way.

"Is Kiyomaro all right?"

"Huh? Look!" He pointed at the blast as it hit the ground - cement and other debris whirling into the air and from the centre of the blast. He and Gash sat stunned and wide-eyed, while the kid-demon laughed.

"Oh, hoho! To think I could've caused more damage than just to your book, little man," he laughed, addressing mainly Gash.

Kiyomaro lept to his feet and found another spell. _"Zakeruga!"_

This powered-up version of the previous attack soared quickly at the demon. Bituah had long ago stepped from the line of fire and cried, _"Uigako!"_ - invoking the frightening energy blast, which had nearly killed Eita and Hyde. It tore through the _Zakeruga_ spell and knocked down Gash with an incredible force.

"Gash!" cried Kiyomaro.

The little Mamono did not move - stunned by the searing power of the spell. He managed to twitch in the struggle to rise, but any more movement pained him. He whimpered, "Kiyo... Kiyomaro-oh..."

_"Jikerunu!"_

The blast headed straight for Kiyomaro. Clutching the book tightly to his chest, he braced himself as the spell knocked him to the ground with a sickening thud. But his grip on the book never waned.

"This one's got spirit!" mocked the demon with a smile. "Guess we're gonna have to burn _him_ if we're going to burn the book."

Kiyomaro's eyes shot wide, and he struggled to stand. His legs trembled, threatening to bring him to his knees, but he stood as tall as his pain allowed.

_"Jikerunu."_ Bituah felt no need to recite her spells with fervor any more. The wind blew forcefully on the young man, whose body convulsed as he fought it. This persistance seemed more foolish than admirable or annoying.

_"Uigako."_

_"Raozaruku!"_

With enthusiasm lacking in Bituah's voice, Agrat Bahn's spell was cancelled by this cry. The sky darkened only a slight, with only a few clouds in the sky, but a bolt of lightning blinked and shot a now-standing Gash, anger glistening in his eyes.

"Oh, the little baby needs a little juice," scoffed Agrat Bahn as he rolled his eyes. "Okay, boy, let us see the magic."

Obviously he did not take Gash seriously enough, and before either he or Bituah knew it, Gash headbutt him straight in the stomach, knocking him off his feet. Agrat Bahn tumbled, holding his injured self and gasping for air as Gash punched him in the face.

"Real cute, brat... You're _real _cute," hissed the demon, "but I... ohh, I! Haha!" And he cast his maddened gaze at wide-eyed Bituah. She nodded once.

_"Ririmayon!"_

And from Agrat Bahn's back sprouted wings with feathers made of such a strange, black material, they looked more like bat- rather than bird-wings.

Agrat Bahn lept high and swiftly into the air, pouncing on Gash and delivering a fierce assault of punches. He grappled the top of his head, hit his face, grabbed his arm and threw him to the ground - so on, so forth with the violence. Kiyomaro watched helplessly.

All the while Bituah stood in her own apprehension - glancing to and from her watch and the fight. She desired to finish this elimination, but she had - in her opinion - a more important piece of business to address.

"Come!" she cried in Arabic. "Our time here wanes."

At first Agrat Bahn did not hear her, but as she chanted his name, he cared to not listen.

"Agrat Bahn! _Now!"_

"Not until I am finished!" he cried, gripping tightly on Gash's delicate throat.

Bituah grit her teeth and turned. "Damn you! I am leaving," and she ran.

Agrat Bahn paused and saw her flight. He cursed and dropped Gash, pursuing her and engulfing themselves in a wind storm, vanishing from sight.

Kiyomaro hurried to Gash in this hiatus, still alarmed by the ruthlessness he had seen.

"Gash, Gash!" he cried, embracing the bruised and bleeding Mamono. "Gash, open your eyes if you can."

"Nnn... Kiyo... Kiyomaro..." he moaned. "What... what happened?"

"They're gone," replied the stunned boy, "and we're going to get you to a hospital. Damn it! How could they," but he snatched the book, his bike and Gash and peddled as swiftly as he could towards the hospital.

Meanwhile, Bituah had fled to the nearest, rather crowded boulevard and ducked into an alley. She removed the veil on her nose and mouth and sighed, when Agrat Bahn suddenly appeared.

"Damn you," he growled. "How dare you? How _dare_ you interrupt me, when I nearly flatlined the boy!"

"How could we stay when _I_ have to fulfill _my_ obligations?"

"You're obligation is solely to me - "

"I am still under obligation to God! And to pray to Him _five times _a day, no matter which land I roam. You know this!"

"What is the point of - "

"Allah rewards disobedience with punishment. Do not _dare_ test me, demon, or I shall send you back to the flames from whence you were wrought!"

Agrat Bahn fumed at this threat.

"How dare you..." he growled through grit teeth, but Bituah turned and marched to the other open end. "No amount of prayer shall ever redeem you... No amount of repentence uttered shall lead you back into the Light of God. You are too deeply involved in the affairs of demons," he began chuckling. _"You know this as fact!"_

The woman halted. Her grip on her book tightened. Agrat Bahn smirked and sauntered behind her.

"Mmm..." He hummed and wrapped his strong, boyish arms around her waist.

"Only Allah and His emissaries may take life."

"I _am _an emissary. I am descended from a long line of Izrial's servants. I have the right to dictate life and death to these people."

"Mmm..." This answer did not please Bituah, but she continued her stroll.

"Hmph!" The demon followed. "And where are you going to find a Mosque in _Japan?"_

"I don't have to be in one to do the daily prayers," replied Bituah, "and as for Friday attendance, we have a good four days and one morning to search."

"Good to know," said Agrat Bahn, and he held her hand as they melted in the crowd to find a proper spot for her to take her bow.


	3. Chapter 3 A Kiss for Eita's Way

**Disclaimer: **Still do not own _Konjiki no Gash_, nor do I make profit from this piece of fanfiction. And for those wondering, we're going by the _manga_ timeline (except for Hyde and Eita).

* * *

_Chapter 3_

Kiyomaro had encountered Megumi and Tio in his rush to the hospital. They assisted him and Gash: transporting them in their vehicle. They prayed that the traffic would not be thick, and after running nearly every stop-light, they arrived half-witless at the entrance to the emergency ward.

A stretcher was hurried outside and rushed Gash inside the building. Kiyomaro desired to stay with him, but his own wounds demanded separate attention. Loyal Megumi, who offered adamantly to accept the expenses, and Tio remained with the little Mamono.

While Kiyomaro received his bandages, the battle replayed in his shocked mind, more surprise than anger consuming him for the moment.

_That woman was so cold, _he thought, _and that Mamono was even worse! I haven't known anybody to be that violent with opponents sicne the Battle with Zophise._

Then his eyes widened with the realisation. He murmured, "They actually tried to _kill_ us."

"What's that?" asked the nurse.

"They wanted to see us die," he iterated the thought.

"Who did, young man?"

"The... the woman!" he exclaimed. "The one who attacked us in the park. She and her friend tried to kill us!"

"Easy, easy!" she interjected. "Now, who else was with you when it happened?"

"The little blond boy. He's with Megumi Ooumi right now in another part of the ward."

A second nurse glanced at her companion, surprised by that mentioning of the superstar. She departed to validate the story, while the other remained to record what he told her.

"Name please."

"Takamine, title name Kiyomaro."

"Age?"

"Fourteen."

"And what did you say happened at the beach park?"

"I told you already," he began, becoming exasperated. "My friend and I were attacked by the woman from earlier today and a companion of hers. Now, may I leave? I have to check on my friend."

"He'll be all right, I assure you. I just need you to tell me, as calmly as you can, all that happened, all that you can remember."

"Not until the police get here, and even then, they don't know what they're really looking for. And even if they do, they have no idea of what this woman is capable. Now may I go?"

The nurse shuddered at the harshness, present in his voice. She hesitated for a moment before replying, "Fine, but I don't know if they'll allow you inside."

Kiyomaro did not care. He flew onto his feet and dashed down the halls, despite his sore muscles. He did not stop until he found Megumi, standing outside one of the doors.

"Where's Tio?" he asked.

"With Gash," she replied. "I can't believe we didn't make it to your battle in time. Tio knew something was wrong."

Kiyomaro smiled weakly. "You made the effort enough, that's good to me. And you brought us here, so we owe you... or else we're even."

"You can owe me enough by explaining to me what we're up against."

Kiyomaro remained silent for the moment. He remembered the hideous speech that the demon had delivered when they met:

_"I have _every_ right!... I am above your human laws, no matter what they consider transgression. And I shall descend as low as I please to win that Crown that I _rightfully _deserve..."_

Finally he uttered, "They tried to kill us... They tried to kill Eita."

"What!" Megumi nearly jumped. Kiyomaro merely nodded.

"The demon had so much hatred, like he didn't belong to the Mamono race but that he was... better than they are... and he seemed a lot more sinister, like how the West perceives demons."

"That can't be. Even Zophiss... but none of us really fought him, but the energy he had... even compared to Mars..." She halted.

"Megumi?"

She lowered her head. "I remember Mars, how cruelly he behaved."

"I wouldn't make the comparison aloud to Tio, but you're close. This Mamono... I don't know. Burning his book might not be enough."

"What do you mean?"

Kiyomaro would not answer. The idea in his head seemed extreme, even against the demonic Beast.

Unknown to the pair, Tio had been listening, and what she learned served not only to dishearten her, but stir memories of her treacherous ex-friend.

"Oh, Gash," she murmured as she returned to his bedside. "What are we supposed to do?" And she laid her head and arms on the mattress.

"Unuu... Tio?"

"Hn?" She lifted her head. "Gash, are you all right?"

He smiled weakly.

"Ach!"

The sudden gasp caught the attention of the humans. When they quickly entered, they found Tio strangling Gash tightly.

"How dare you worry me like that!" she growled. "Who do you think you are, taking on a rogue Mamono like that? I ought to kill you before he does!"

Sweat beads of exasperation trickled down the humans' faces. Even as a fast healer, Gash still had a few

hours to go before he was in tip-top condition. He did not need one of Tio's unfounded stranglings.

"Un, can we let go before we aggravate his condition?" asked Kiyomaro.

Tio snapped from her funk, only to become obnoxiously apologetic. "Oh, no, Gash! Are you okay?" She pet him and straightened his hair. "I'm so sorry!"

"How nutty does this girl get?" muttered Kiyomaro.

"She's better than most bodyguards against the fans," replied Megumi.

"I wouldn't doubt that, one hundred and ten percent."

Then he recalled someone. "Hey! There's this one guy that I remember: the one who was attacked earlier. I think he used to be a big fan of yours. If you come with me, maybe _you_ can get him to tell us something about the demon."

"You sure that's wise?" asked Megumi. "What if his family disapproves?"

"We can try. Will you two be okay?"

Tio nodded before Kiyomaro said, "And don't strangle him again."

"I promise," she vowed, and the teenagers left.

"How are we going to find him?" asked Megumi.

"Ask," said Kiyomaro. "He and I were attacked by the same assailant. They have to let us see each other."

"Not if the police have a say."

"I don't care about that. They don't know what this is; they still haven't even figured out the War itself yet."

The nagging sensation still bit at Megumi, all the minutes they spent, cautiously eyeing people and wondering which one would have the best information. A large amount of time passed when they suddenly spotted what looked like reporters outside one of the doors.

"Kiyomaro, hide," whispered Megumi harshly, and they ducked behind a corner. "Reporters."

"What?" He glanced around the corner and eyed the two men, who spoke to a third. "Wait a minute. Those two are investigators." The third was a tall, morose figure with thin glasses, decked in a dark blue turtleneck and black pants.

Finally the investigators dismissed themselves. The teenagers waited until they passed before heading to the room.

"Eita Kubozuka," whispered Kiyomaro, and the pair peered inside the room.

The tall man stood over the smaller and paler form. The boy was attached to nearly every hospitable machine imaginable. The man sat besides him and held a nearly lifeless hand, his head lowered as far as it could go.

Megumi stepped before Kiyomaro and knocked on the doorway. The man's head shot nightmarishly quickly towards her.

"What do you want?" he asked quickly and firmly.

The music star blinked rapidly twice before replying, wide eyes naïve. "My name is Megumi Ooumi. I'm... a close friend of Eita Kubozuka."

"Eita had no friends," replied the man quickly.

Megumi glanced at Kiyomaro, his eyebrows knit. She entered cautiously while talking. "He did, Sir, in a way, though I never really knew him as my - "

"That's close enough!" he commanded firmly. He eyed her with suspicion. "Hn... You're the singer" - she nodded. "Heh. He must have been a fan - yes, he very much was."

The man stood. "A seat? For the princess?"

"Not at the moment, thank you."

The man glanced at Kiyomaro with hawk eyes. "You? A seat?" But Kiyomaro declined with a shake of the head. "Hmph! Children, always saying 'no,' like what _he's_ doing. Idiot, saying 'no' to death. Very well took Izanami; he should just go already."

That sentence caught the teenagers' attention in a negative mean. If this man truly was his father as they assumed, then this was very much no loving father at that.

"I'm guessing that you're his father?" queried Kiyomaro.

"What business is that of yours?" countered the man. "I've told the police all I need to tell. What I want from them and everyone else is to see my foolish son die in peace."

_I can see why Eita left home in the first place, _thought Kiyomaro bitterly, but uncomfortable Megumi spoke: "My friend here and I wonder... if my presence could be used to stimulate his mind, maybe even wake him?"

"Why bother?" snarled Mister Kubozuka. "Even so, some teenage teenybopper won't be enough to do it," and he stepped to the side, allowing Megumi to sit besides Eita.

She slipped timidly passed the morose figure and sat humbly besides Eita, the chair groaning mournfully. She leaned closely and held his pallor hand. Her eyebrows knit as she whispered sweetly, "Eita? Eita Kubozuka?"

But the young man did not stir. Her only reply came from beeping machines and bouncing lines on the screens. She iterated, "Eita? Eita, please wake up. It's Megumi."

Her name gained no instant reply, not even a meek groan. But as she continued to stare, Eita's eyelids twitched, and she felt the most gentle twinge of the fingers in her grip. A sound, some decibels below a whisper, was detected.

"What did he say?" asked Kiyomaro.

"Me... Megu... mi?" iterated the patient huskily.

"Yes, yes, it's me, Miss Ooumi," she replied, tightening her own grip on his hand. "Hello, Eita."

His eyelids finally opened, only halfway and very slowly. Nevertheless, he compensated for these opaque eyes with a weak, jovial smile.

"Praise the gods," he uttered. "Megumi... what are you... what are you doing here?" - his voice dimming towards the end.

"I came to see you." She grinned. "This boy, Kiyomaro, told me that you are my most loyal fan."

Eita blinked once, confounded, and then glanced towards where the other young man stood. Kiyomaro smirked sincerely, and Eita returned his eyes to Megumi.

"I owe him, I guess," he smirked.

"To do him a favour would be doing _me _a favour."

"Even better," but he coughed before he could laugh. "What would you ask of me?"

Megumi glanced at Kiyomaro, who equally realised how sensitive they would have to be: speaking of the Mamono war and the attack on Eita before Mister Kubozuka. But Kiyomaro began:

"Hyde, the kid you were with - what happened to him?"

Eita's eyes widened slightly. Megumi stroked his forehead with her free hand.

"Eita, you don't have to answer."

"After Gash nearly fell to the same Fate?" said Kiyomaro.

"What are you talking about?" asked the father sternly.

Eita closed his eyes and fell into a brief lapse of contemplation. Eyes still closed, he explained, "The girl... the girl with the veil..."

"Stop this - "

"Her Mamono..." Eita interrupted his father. "The little goat-child... the kid-beast... he was... _is... _a Beast." And he opened his eyes. "How is your little _gaki, _Kiyomaro?"

"Not well," he replied, "and unless we can learn more, that Beast will become King. And you know what that means for Hyde."

Eita shut his eyes again.

"You children," began Mister Kubozuka, "this talk of demons if nonsense. Real monsters - people - are terrorising our city, and you have the audacity to speak of myths? Out with you both! This boy suffers from enough delusions!"

Then only the sound of the machines prevailed. Suddenly Eita gasped deeply, alarming his witnesses. He coughed, wheezed, gagged - struggled to breathe.

"Get away from him!" cried his father quickly as he leapt to his side, but Eita protested.

"Megumi... Megumi come back!" he begged. "Please, it was just a spasm, please..." His desperate voice saddened her.

His father glanced at her cringing form, whose wide, innocent eyes met his. He reliquished his position for her again, and she returned to Eita's side, holding his hand again.

Eita smiled.

"Would you... would you... hold me?" he asked, and he began forcing his trembling body to sit. Megumi wrapped her arms gently around him, supporting him as he moaned in agony. "Oh, gods..."

"You should lie down," she said, but he kept his smirk.

"No, no... I want to sit..." Then he glanced in her eyes and then asked, "Would you... would you ever... kiss me?"

Megumi knit her eyebrows, somewhat worried. "A kiss?"

Eita's grin widened. "Just a kiss... for the way."

Megumi smiled and obliged: pressing her lips tenderly upon his forehead. Eita's face brightened ever-so slightly. "The best kiss... a girl could ever give to a young man..." And he limpened in her embrace, his machines toning monotonously - the signal for his death.

"Eita." His father rested by his other side and embraced his son. "Eita, dear Eita..."

Megumi carefully relinquished him, and she and Kiyomaro sombrely left his father to his privacy. They stolled down the halls, returning to Gash and Tio. While they walked, Megumi said, "Kiyomaro, this is terrible. What are we going to do?"

"Can't do much now," he said. Then he clenched a fist tightly. "Damn it," he cursed, "someone's dead. People's lives have been threatened before, but now someone's truly _dead._ Damn it, Megumi, what can we do?"

"Keep calm in front of Gash and Tio, for one," she said. "And no sudden outbursts that someone's been killed."

Kiyomaro cursed again under grit teeth.

When the pair arrived, they found the demon children fastly and peacefully asleep. Megumi smiled and sat besides them, but stoic Kiyomaro remained vigilant at the door. He recalled his grim thought from earlier: they would have to do more than burn the goat-demon's book.

They would have to _kill_ him, if need be, _before_ sending it back.


	4. Chapter 4 Kafka Meets the Beast

_**Chapter 3**_

_God the Great, God the Beneficent, the Ever-knowing..._

Bituah took her first bow after finding a family-owned shop, where she was allowed to do her prayer in a covert corner. Agrat Bahn observed her closely as usual, scorn from the interrupted fight having waned. Then he stood besides her as she took her second bow and joined her.

_What in the world?_ screamed her brain, and she nearly bolted from the rug on which she kowtowed. But she could not deviate from her devotion, and she swiftly finished her ritual.

"What were you doing?" she asked as she rolled up the rug.

"What?" Agrat Bahn seemed genuinely naïve.

Bituah stood, rug under one arm, book under the other. She pointed as the floor. "That!"

"Hn?"

As Bituah walked passed him to the man at the counter, she said, "Are we come to the point where you will mock me?"

"Mock you?" Agrat Bahn seemed surprised. "I'm as much a Believer as you are! Why should I not worship the One Supreme?"

Bituah sighed and thanked the elderly shop keeper in the best Japanese mustered, returning the rug and stepping outside. Agrat Bahn cocked his head and quickly caught up with her steps.

"Why are you so testy lately?" he asked. "It isn't like I was committing a sin. Mamono can't sin—"

"That's my point," began Bituah. "Demons aren't any good in the first place, and therefore there's no point in your seeking redemption. It seems like utter mockery—"

Agrat Bahn halted and grinned annoyedly. "Okay, first of all, I wasn't mocking you. I was fulfilling my duty as—"

"—'an Emissary of God,' " said Bituah in sync with him.

"And secondly, as a result, I'm not just some Mamono. I transcend what neither they not humans can comprehend, especially humans like the latest ones we've faced."

Bituah sighed and shook her head low. She strolled to the nearest crosswalk and walked to the next boulevard, Agrat Bahn trailing behind her.

"I'm having misgivings," whispered Bituah to herself, "about the whole thing..."

"What's that?"

Bituah halted, Agrat Bahn nearly careening into her. "Aiya, watch with the sudden stops!" But the young woman gave no reply. "Hey, what's with the silent shock?"

Bituah hummed. Then she replied, "Let's go get something to drink in that café."

"Hn?" Agrat Bahn glanced across the street. He grinned and followed her, sitting outside with her. A woman, not much older than thirty years old, noticed them and strolled outside.

"Hello there," she greeted them in Japanese. "You want anything to drink?"

Bituah blinked and cocked her head. Agrat Bahn replied for her: "You have some Darjeeling tea?"

"Hot or cold?"

The demon grinned warmly. "I should hope hot! And for the both of us."

"That'll be all?"

"Yep!"

"All right, then," and the smiling woman returned inside her café. Upon her absence, Agrat Bahn's smile fell to a bitter smirk.

"A further inconvenience," began Bituah, "this language barrier. At least I know a little bit of English, that these people could speak some."

Agrat Bahn chuckled and then replied, "Oh, don't be so nationalistic! Not all the world speaks Arabic, Bituah, let alone English."

The Yemeni woman scoffed. "It's the new Latin!" And she sighed and crossed her arms.

Soon their tea arrived. Bituah sipped her tea quietly while Agrat Bahn observed the people passing on the other sidewalk. He suddenly noticed on that side a short happy fellow, skipping through the crowd. And as soon as the crowd thinned, he recognised the figure as a pony-like Mamono. Agrat Bahn's eyes narrowed with malicious delight.

_Well, well, he thought, another whelp from Gehenna's womb!_ he thought.

Eyes still fixed on the tiny Mamono, Agrat Bahn hissed, "Bituah," and brought her out of her reverie. "We've another infidel on hand."

Bituah glanced at the pony Mamono out of the corner of her eye. She sipped her tea and nodded almost indetectibly.

"Shall we then?" purred the demon.

"Mmm... in a minute," she replied, rather hoping to avoid another scuffle. And she glanced inside the café and handed the book to Agrat Bahn. She stepped inside to pay for the tea, the demon keeping an anxious view on his opponent.

Meanwhile, a jolly Umagon—decked in an English moustache and bowler hat and holding a cane—entertained the passers-by, dancing happily as he waited for his Master to return from one of the stores. Many of the people, young ladies especially, were amused by his antics and often tossed a small sum of money when he bared open his hat.

"Meru meru me!" Umagon felt certain that he could afford some yellowtail fish for himself and his dear friends. His book keeper, Kafka Sunbeam, would be most impressed with his act.

"Why, you could be an entertainer as well as the King!" he would say.

"Meru meru me! Meru meru!" chirped Umagon.

"What are you so happy about?" growled a voice from behind him.

Umagon stopped and glanced up. He sweated and jumped back in a fright from the dark figure, who laughed heartily.

"Calm down, little friend," chuckled Sunbeam. "What have you been doing while I've been gone?"

"Meru?" Then Umagon smiled and hopped to him. He showed him his bowled full of yen. "Meru meru me! Meru meru, meru meru me. Meru meru meru, meru me!"

"Hn, hn! Groovy," replied Sunbeam, eyes glistening.

But the shine died suddenly when he caught a shadow out of the corner of his eye. Umagon cocked his head and also looked at the tall, veiled woman and the goat demon besides her. Sunbeam growled contemplatively.

"Not here," he announced, stopping them before they stood a mere metre near them.

The goat demon smirked, his hands akimbo. "Give us the best reason why?"

Sunbeam glanced at all the people on the sidewalks and the vehicles in the street. The demon shook its sandy-gold head and replied, "Oh dear, oh dear, I don't think that's enough," and he snapped his fingers.

_"Aranya!"_ And a large gust of wind blew against the unsuspecting pair. Umagon tumbled as Sunbeam rolled and dropped his bags.

"Damn it!" he cursed through clenched teeth, and he leapt to his feet and snatched Umagon. "Argh!" And he ran quickly back to pick up his packages comically swiftly and hurried for his car.

"Keys! Keys! Keys!" He unlocked the doors and threw all, including buried Umagon, in the seats,zipped through the driver's door, and started the car. As soon as he saw the pursuing pair, he jet into traffic at the first opening and raced to get out of the city.

_If they want a fight,_ thought Sunbeam, _they're going to have to fight on a safer plain._

"Meru meru?" Umagon slithered through the packages and leapt to the front seat, only to be thrown back. "Meru meru!"

"Stay where it's safe!" growled his book keeper. Well... relatively safe...

And he drove for the longest time towards the mountains, but right before he was out:

_B-DNG! KOOSH!_

"AH!" The duo shrieked as an object crashed from the sky thunderously into the road, causing Kafka Sunbeam to skid to keep from hitting the object.

_"Verdammter Feind! Der Schweinhund, der—"_ A stream of curses poured from the German's mouth as he stopped the car. Poor Umagon had slammed against the door and was frantically trying to recover his wits. Then Sunbeam unbuckled his seat belt and hurried to open his trunk, taking out his tanned-orange spell book.

"What in their Makai was that?" he growled and glanced at the figure.

Sunbeam's blue eyes widened frightfully at the imposing creature. Tall with charcoal brown skin and short black hair, the creature donned a black dress, slit on its sides like an animal, with dark trousers beneath. Dark dried blood-red bat wings spanned ominously, and the eerie glow of vermillion eyes did not alleviate its fearsome appearance.

"Meru meru me?" Umagon stepped out and saw the Beast. He cried, "Meru meru me! Meru meru me! Meru—"

"Hush!" Sunbeam clamped a hand over his mouth, stare fixed on the creature.

Without warning, a shriek to bleed all ears pierced the air and brought the human and his Mamono to their knees. A dusty gust encircled the Beast, and upon the wind's passing only Bituah and Agrat Bahn stood.

"What in the world?"

"Hn, hn, hn..." A cackle of ineffable unearthliness followed from the goat demon's throat. Umagon hid behind his Master, trembling uncontrollably.

"Infidel fools!" laughed the malicious child. "We are the eyes and hands and scythe of His Majesty, the One! His servant Malik will be most pleased to receive more souls to tease in Hell!"

"You despicable sadist..." growled Sunbeam. _"Shudoruku!"_

Flames engulfed Umagon and formed a brilliant gold and red armour around him. The Mamono brayed and charged at his opponent.

_"Jikerunu!"_

The large beam of energy hurtled towards Umagon, who quickly veered to one side and bolted towards Agrat Bahn. The child's eyes widened and glanced anxiously at Bituah.

_"Uigako!"_

The massive blast of energy careened into the armoured Umagon only a few breaths from being able to impale Agrat Bahn. The pony demon struggled to keep on his feet as he enemy strained to keep the spell blowing.

"Ah!"

Bituah yelped as a stone hit her forehead. Agrat Bahn glanced at her and caught askance Kafka Sunbeam with a pile of small stones by his feet. The distraction allowed Umagon to butt the boy metres across the ground.

"Ah... you damnable little..." Agrat Bahn sat quivering, hand trembling on a welted and bleeding cheek. His left eye twitched violently in grievous annoyance, and he glared viciously at Bituah.

"The sixth spell... Use the sixth spell!" he cried, but the young woman merely stared with wide, frightened eyes. She knew what damage that the spell could inflict.

"Use the spell, damn you!" he cursed, and she responded immediately:

_"Gyandorogu!"_

Suddenly Agrat Bahn's eyes rolled back in his head. He rose to his feet in his zombie-like daze and floated mere inches from the ground, inhaling deeply. Without any warning, a scream, louder and more violent than the cry before, reverberated with such shock that the ground quaked and windows shattered instantly.

"Argh! Ah!" Neither Kafka nor Umagon could stand it. And when the human glanced at one hand, blood was on his palm. "Ah, son of a..."

"Meru meru! Meru meru me..." whinnied Umagon mournfully.

Slowly the shriek subsided. Agrat Bahn was dizzied but standing and grinning triumphantly.

"How's that, ya little... ya little bast..."

Bituah hurried behind him and held him by his shoulders. She eased him down to sit and began whispering in his ear.

"Meru meru? Meru—ME!"

Sunbeam snatched the pony demon by his horn armour and rushed behind his car. He looked at his palm again, well aware that he had to get to a doctor immediately.

_"Uigako!"_

"Not groovy..." And the human grabbed a flustered Umagon by the horn again and rushed away before the car was crushed by the energy. He heard a crash and people scream immediately.

"We've gotta get out of here," _as cliché as that sounds,_ he ended in thought. _And we've gotta get_ them _away._

Bituah and Agrat Bahn were on their feet, eyes following their fleeing opponents.

"Shall we then?" mocked Bituah, supporting the demon, but he hissed and replied:

"Forget them. Get me to the wilderness now!"

"As you please," and in the spell _Sheitanaii,_ they vanished and flew to mountains.


End file.
